Storage medium storing computer-readable instructions for generating layout image data representing layout image in which two images are arranged adjacent to each other

ABSTRACT

A set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by a computer in an information processing device, causes the information processing device to perform: a setting process; and in response to receiving a print instruction in which a cut print setting is set: a generation process; and a transmission process. The setting process sets the cut print setting for printing an image on a sheet and dividing the printed sheet at a center position thereof in a prescribed direction. The generation process acquires first and second page data representing respective ones of first and second target images to generate layout image data representing a layout image in which first and second images corresponding to respective ones of the first and second target images are arranged adjacent to each other in the prescribed direction. The transmission process transmits print data based on the layout image data and a cut command to a printer.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No.2021-124022 filed Jul. 29, 2021. The entire content of the priorityapplication is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND ART

Printers having a cutting function for cutting sheets that have beenprinted are known in the art. Japanese Patent Application PublicationNo. 2020-001358 describes one example of an image-forming deviceprovided with a cutting function. This conventional image-forming devicegenerates image data representing a plurality of pages of images thathave been laid out to be printed on a single sheet, performs printingbased on the image data having this layout, and cuts the printed sheetinto page units.

DESCRIPTION

There may be occasions when a user wishing to form printed matter onA5-size sheets only possesses A4-size sheets. In such cases, the usercan print an image on the A4-size sheet and then manually cut theprinted sheet in half to obtain the desired printed matter, for example,but this requires the user to perform time-consuming manual work. Theprinter disclosed in the document described above can save the user muchtime and effort by laying out A5-size images for an A4-size sheet,printing the images on an A4-size sheet, and automatically cutting thesheet in half. However, requiring the printer to perform processes forlaying out images, as in the document described above, places a heavyload on the printer. Therefore, improvements to the device thattransmits the image data to the printer are needed.

In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present disclosure toprovide a storage medium storing computer-readable instructions forcontrolling printers having a cutting function for cutting printedsheets that is capable of improving the image data being transmitted toa printer.

In order to attain the above and other objects, according to one aspect,the present disclosure provides a non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium storing a set of computer-readable instructions installedon and executed by a computer in an information processing device. Theinformation processing device includes: a user interface; acommunication interface; and the computer. The user interface isconfigured to receive a user operation. The communication interface isconfigured to communicate with a printer. The printer has: a printingfunction; and a cutting function. The printing function is a functionfor printing an image on a sheet of a printing medium while conveyingthe sheet in a prescribed direction parallel to a longitudinal directionof the sheet. The cutting function is a function for cutting the printedsheet on which the image is printed. The set of computer-readableinstructions, when executed by the computer, causes the informationprocessing device to perform: a setting process. The setting process isa process to set, in response to receiving an instruction through theuser interface, a cut print setting for printing an image on a sheethaving a first size and dividing the printed sheet on which the image isprinted at a center position of the printed sheet in the prescribeddirection into a first portion and a second portion. The first portionand the second portion have a second size. The set of computer-readableinstructions, when executed by the computer, causes the informationprocessing device to further perform: in response to receiving a printinstruction in which the cut print setting is set: a generation process;and a transmission process. The generation process is a process toacquire first page data representing a first target image and secondpage data representing a second target image from image datarepresenting a plurality of target images corresponding to respectiveones of a plurality of pages to generate layout image data representinga layout image in which a first image corresponding to the first targetimage and a second image corresponding to the second target image arearranged adjacent to each other in the prescribed direction. Theplurality of target images includes the first target image and thesecond target image. The plurality of pages includes a first page and asecond page immediately following the first page. The first page datacorresponds to the first page. The second page data corresponds to thesecond page. The layout image has a size corresponding to the firstsize. The first image and the second image have a size corresponding tothe second size. The transmission process is a process to transmit printdata based on the layout image data generated in the generation processand a cut command to the printer. The printer is configured to print thelayout image on a sheet having the first size and cut the printed sheeton which the layout image is printed at a center position of the printedsheet in the prescribed direction in response to receiving the printdata and the cut command.

By executing the set of computer-readable instructions disclosed herein,the information processing device generates layout image datarepresenting a layout image having a first size in which two imagescorresponding to a second size are arranged side-by-side in theprescribed direction corresponding to a conveyance direction of sheets,and transmits print data based on the layout image data together with acut command to a printer. In response to receiving the print datatogether with the cut command, the printer prints the layout image on asheet having the first size and cuts the printed sheet in half in theprescribed direction, thereby outputting second-size printed matter withrespective images printed in page units. This eliminates the need forthe printer to perform a process for arranging images, thereby reducingthe load on the printer.

An information processing device that implements the functions of theset of computer-readable instructions described above and a controlmethod for implementing the functions of the set of computer-readableinstructions described above are also novel and useful.

The technique disclosed herein provides a storage medium storingcomputer-readable instructions for controlling a printer having acutting function for cutting a printed sheet and improving image data tobe transmitted to the printer.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of apersonal computer according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a schematic configurationof a printer.

FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram illustrating steps showing operationscaused by programs in relation to printing.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a settingsscreen.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are explanatory diagrams each of which illustrates oneexample of a sample image showing an image of printed matter.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a warningscreen.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a printscreen.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a printing process.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a guidancescreen.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a one-page single-sidedprocess.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a white-out process.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of aselection screen.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a locationin a sheet of a print data area for pasting rasterized image data.

FIGS. 14A through 14D are explanatory diagrams each of which illustratesa layout order of printed matter created on the printer.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a two-page duplex process.

FIGS. 16A through 16D are explanatory diagrams each of which illustratesa layout order of printed matter created on the printer.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a two-page single-sidedprocess.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram illustrating one example of a locationin a sheet of a print data area for pasting rasterized image data.

FIGS. 19A through 19D are explanatory diagrams each of which illustratesa layout order of printed matter created on the printer.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustrating steps in a four-page duplex process.

FIGS. 21A through 21D are explanatory diagrams each of which illustratesa layout order of printed matter created on the printer.

Next, an embodiment of the program according to the present disclosurewill be described while referring to the accompanying drawings. Theprogram disclosed in this embodiment is executed on a personal computer(hereinafter referred to as “PC”) 1 that can be connected to a printerhaving a printing function.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 , the PC 1 in the present embodiment isprovided with a controller 10 that includes a central processing unit(hereinafter referred to as “CPU”) 11 and a memory 12. The PC 1 is oneexample of the information processing device of the present disclosure,and the CPU 11 is one example of the computer of the present disclosure.The PC 1 is also provided with a user interface 13 and a communicationinterface 14, both of which are electrically connected to the controller10. Note that the controller 10 in FIG. 1 is a general concept thatcovers all hardware and software used for controlling the PC 1 and isnot actually limited to representing a single piece of hardware presentin the PC 1.

The CPU 11 executes various processes according to programs read fromthe memory 12 and based on user operations. The memory 12 stores variousprograms and various data and is also used as a work area when the CPU11 executes various processes. A buffer provided in the CPU 11 is alsoone example of the memory of the present disclosure. Examples of thememory 12 may be a ROM, a RAM, a hard disk drive, or the like built intothe PC 1 or may be any storage medium that is readable and writable bythe CPU 11, such as a CD-ROM or a DVD-ROM.

The user interface 13 includes hardware that displays screens forreporting information to the user, and hardware that receives useroperations. The user interface 13 may be a set of devices including adisplay capable of displaying information and a mouse, keyboard, and thelike with input-receiving functions. Alternatively, the user interface13 may be a touchscreen provided with both a display function and aninput-receiving function.

The communication interface 14 includes hardware for communicating withan external device such as a printer 3. The communication standardemployed by the communication interface 14 may be Ethernet (registeredtrademark), Wi-Fi (registered trademark), Universal Serial Bus(abbreviated as “USB”), or the like. “Ethernet” is a Japanese registeredtrademark of FUJIFILM Business Innovation Corp. “Wi-Fi” is a Japaneseregistered trademark of Wi-Fi Alliance. Alternatively, the PC 1 may beprovided with a plurality of communication interfaces 14 supporting aplurality of communication standards.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the memory 12 of the PC 1 stores an operatingsystem (hereinafter referred to as “OS”) 21, an editing applicationprogram (hereinafter referred to as “editing app”) 22, and a printerdriver 23. The printer driver 23 is one example of the computer-readableinstructions of the present disclosure. The OS 21 may be one of Windows(registered trademark), macOS (registered trademark), Linux (registeredtrademark), iOS (registered trademark), and Android (registeredtrademark). “Windows” is a Japanese registered trademark of MicrosoftCorporation. “macOS” is a Japanese registered trademark of Apple Inc.“Linux” is a Japanese registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. “iOS” is aJapanese registered trademark of Cisco Technology Inc. “Android is aJapanese registered trademark of Google Inc.

The editing app 22 is a program that accepts instructions for creating,editing, printing, and saving images and documents, for example.Examples of the editing app 22 include Microsoft Word (registeredtrademark) and Microsoft PowerPoint (registered trademark) developed byMicrosoft Corporation (registered trademark), and an app developed bythe vendor of the printer 3. “Microsoft,” “Word,” and “PowerPoint” areJapanese registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. The editing app22 accepts user operations including instructions for controlling theprinter 3 to perform prescribed operations. Specifically, the editingapp 22 accepts instructions via the user interface 13, such as adesignation of a device to be used for printing, a designation of animage to be printed, an instruction to edit print settings, and aninstruction to execute a print, for example. The editing app 22 may alsobe capable of accepting such print settings as specifications for sheettype and size, a specification for the number of copies to be printed,and a specification for duplex printing.

The printer driver 23 is a program that supports the model of theprinter 3 and communicates with the printer 3 to control the operationsof the same. The printer driver 23 is started when the editing app 22 orthe like receives an instruction to execute a print (print executioninstruction) or an instruction to edit advanced print settings while theprinter 3 is designated in the editing app 22. When the printer driver23 receives a print job based on the print execution instructionreceived by the editing app 22 or the like, the printer driver 23generates print data based on image data specified in the print job.

The printer 3 in the present embodiment is a device possessing at leasta printing function for printing images on sheets of a printing medium,and a communication function for communicating with the PC 1. Asillustrated in the example of FIG. 2 , the printer 3 is provided with aprint unit 31 that includes a print head (not illustrated) for formingimages on sheets, a sheet-feeding tray 32 that accommodates the sheetsprior to printing, a discharge tray 33 in which the printed sheets arereceived, a conveying mechanism 34 for conveying sheets, and a cutter 35for cutting sheets.

When the printer 3 executes a print, the conveying mechanism 34 feedsone sheet P from the sheet-feeding tray 32 onto a conveying path R1depicted with a one-dot chain line in FIG. 2 and conveys the sheet P tothe print head of the print unit 31. The print head of the print unit 31in the printer 3 is capable of performing inkjet printing, for example,by ejecting ink droplets downward in FIG. 2 in order to form an image onthe top surface of the opposing sheet. The printer 3 continues to conveythe sheet P while printing the same and discharges the sheet P into thedischarge tray 33 face up, i.e., with the printed surface facing upwardin the drawing. Here, the printing method of the print head of the printunit 31 is not limited to the inkjet method, but may be theelectrophotographic method, the thermal transfer method, or the like. Inthe present embodiment, the printer 3 may be capable of performing colorprinting or monochrome printing only.

The printer 3 in the present embodiment is also capable of executingduplex printing. When performing duplex printing, the printer 3 firstcompletes a print on one side of the sheet and subsequently haltsconveyance of the sheet, pulling the sheet back into the printer 3before the sheet is discharged into the discharge tray 33. At this time,the printer 3 conveys the sheet back to the print head of the print unit31 while inverting the sheet so that the back surface now opposes theprint head of the print unit 31 and the trailing edge is now the leadingedge of the sheet. Specifically, after printing is completed on one sideof the sheet and the trailing edge of the sheet in the conveyingdirection arrives at a branching position BP, the printer 3 controls theprint head 31 to temporarily halt conveyance and subsequently to reversethe conveying direction so that the sheet is drawn onto a conveying pathR2 depicted with a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2 . The conveying path R2merges with the conveying path R1 at a merging point GP upstream of theprint head of the print unit 31 in the conveying direction. The sheetenters the conveying path R1 at the merging point GP and is conveyedback to the print head of the print unit 31 with the unprinted sidefacing upward to oppose the print head of the print unit 31. After bothsides of the sheet have been printed, the printer 3 discharges the sheetinto the discharge tray 33 so that the surface printed last is face up.

As illustrated in FIG. 2 , the printer 3 of the present embodiment isfurther provided with conveying rollers 341 and 342. The cutter 35 isdisposed between the conveying rollers 341 and 342 in the conveyingdirection of the sheet. The cutter 35 is provided with a pair of upperand lower blades, and a carriage for moving the blades. The carriage canmove both blades in a direction parallel to the axial direction of theconveying roller 342, i.e., orthogonal to the conveying direction of thesheet in the printer 3, while the blades are in close proximity to eachother. The conveying roller 342 is the roller in the conveying mechanism34 disposed nearest the discharge tray 33. The conveying direction ofthe sheet in the printer 3 is one example of the prescribed direction ofthe present disclosure.

With the cutter 35, the printer 3 has a cutting function for dividing aprinted sheet in the conveying direction into a front portion and a rearportion prior to discharging the sheet. Specifically, the printer 3 canacquire information on the leading edge and trailing edge positions ofthe sheet in the conveying direction based on detection results of apaper sensor or the like, halt conveyance of the sheet when the sheethas been conveyed to a prescribed position based on this acquiredinformation, and drive the cutter 35 to cut the sheet at a prescribedposition. As a result, the sheet is divided in the conveying directioninto front and rear portions prior to discharge. As an alternative, thecutter 35 may be configured with only one of the upper and lower bladesor may be configured with a blade extending along the width direction ofthe sheet, and a carriage for moving the blade up and down.

One of the print settings that the printer driver 23 can receive in thepresent embodiment is a cut print setting. The cut print setting in thepresent embodiment sets a printing mode for printing an A4-size sheetand subsequently dividing the sheet at a center position of thelongitudinal direction. When a print instruction that includes a cutprint setting is received, the printer driver 23 transmits print datafor an A4-size image and a cutting instruction for cutting the sheet tothe printer 3. In the present embodiment, the printer driver 23 acceptsa cut print setting that combines printing of an A4-size sheet with acutting instruction but does not accept an instruction to cut sheets ofsizes other than the A4 size. However, the printer driver 23 may accepta setting for cutting sheets of sizes other than the A4 size, providedthat the sheet size is supported by the cutting function of the printer3.

When the printer 3 receives print data and a cutting instruction, theprinter 3 conveys an A4-size sheet with the longitudinal dimensionaligned in the conveying direction, prints an image on the sheet basedon the print data, and cuts the sheet in half at the longitudinal centerposition, thereby obtaining two printed sheets of A5 size. A4 size isone example of the first size of the present disclosure, and A5 size isone example of the second size of the present disclosure. Thereafter,the printer 3 resumes conveyance of the cut sheets, discharging thefront sheet in the conveying direction into the discharge tray 33 first,and subsequently discharging the rear sheet on top of the front sheet.

The position at which the sheet is cut by the cutter 35 of the printer 3may deviate from the correct position due to such factors as conveyanceirregularities and misalignment of the blade driving position. Themargin of cutting error on the printer 3 of the present embodiment is 3mm. This error margin is the maximum deviation between the actualcutting position in the printer 3 and the set position. That is, thecutting position in the printer 3 of the present embodiment is within ±3mm of the longitudinal center position on an A4-size sheet.

Next, the steps in various printing-related processes executed on the PC1 on which the editing app 22 and the printer driver 23 are installedwill be described with reference to the sequence diagram in FIG. 3 andvarious flowcharts. Note that the processes performed on the PC 1 andeach step in the flowcharts described below is essentially a processperformed by the CPU 11 according to instructions described in theprinter driver 23 and other programs.

As illustrated in FIG. 3 , in P01 the user executes the editing app 22and selects Print while the document or image to be printed is selectedin the editing app 22. When the editing app 22 receives aprinting-related instruction while the printer 3 is currently selectedas the printing device, in P02 the editing app 22 starts up the printerdriver 23 corresponding to the printer 3 and requests information on thecapabilities of the printer 3 from the printer driver 23. The printerdriver 23 receives the request in P02 via the OS 21, for example.

In response to this request, the printer driver 23 transfers capabilityinformation on the capabilities of the printer 3 to the editing app 22in P03. The capability information includes information related toselectable print settings, such as information on selectable paper sizesand printing resolutions. In the present embodiment, the printer driver23 returns the capability information including information on specialsizes associated with cut print settings as selectable paper sizes. Theprinter driver 23 may also acquire and save information on thecapabilities of the printer 3 in advance or may acquire this informationby requesting the information from the printer 3 or the like in responseto a request from the editing app 22.

In P04 the editing app 22 displays a print screen based on theinformation received from the printer driver 23 and accepts instructionsfor general (basic) print settings. The print screen acceptsspecifications for general (basic) print settings including a paper sizeselection, an instruction to edit advanced print settings, aninstruction to execute a print, and the like. When the editing app 22receives an instruction for selecting a paper size in the print screen,for example, the editing app 22 displays a list of options forselectable paper sizes in the print screen based on the capabilityinformation received from the printer driver 23. Since the paper sizesreturned from the printer driver 23 in the capability informationinclude special sizes, the special sizes are included in the paper sizeoptions displayed by the editing app 22. The paper sizes will bedescribed later in greater detail.

The editing app 22 can receive an instruction in the displayed printscreen to edit advanced print settings (opt: [advanced settingsinstruction]). When the editing app 22 receives an instruction to editadvanced print settings in P11, in P12 the editing app 22 transfersinformation on print settings currently selected in the print screen andinformation indicating an instruction to edit advanced print settings tothe printer driver 23.

Based on the instruction received from the editing app 22, in P13 theprinter driver 23 displays a settings screen on the user interface 13for accepting operations to edit advanced print settings (advancedsettings screen) and in P14 receives editing instructions for advancedprint settings based on user operations. FIG. 4 illustrates a samplesettings screen 50 that the printer driver 23 displays on the userinterface 13 to receive user operations.

The settings screen 50 shown in FIG. 4 includes a document sizeselection field 51, a checkbox 52 for receiving a cut print setting, acheckbox 53 for receiving a thick paper cut setting, a checkbox 54 forreceiving a reverse order print setting, a duplex print selection field55, a sample image 57 showing a preview of the printed image, an OKbutton 58, and a Cancel button 59. The settings screen 50 may acceptother settings in addition to the items described above, such assettings for paper type, printing quality, color or monochrome printing,and number of copies.

The document size selected in the document size selection field 51 isinformation specifying the size of image to be printed. When aninstruction to execute a print is received, the editing app 22 generatesimage data based on the size of the image being printed. The process ofreceiving a selection for the document size through an operation in thedocument size selection field 51 is one example of the selection processof the present disclosure.

The checkbox 52 is information indicating whether to include a cut printsetting in the print settings. The process of receiving a cut printsetting through an operation in the checkbox 52 is one example of thesetting process of the present disclosure. Note that the printer driver23 can only accept a cut print setting through a check in the checkbox52 when “A4” or “A5” is selected as the document size. The printerdriver 23 will not accept an operation in the checkbox 52 when thedocument size is not one of “A4” and “A5”. The thick paper cut settingaccording to a check in the checkbox 53 is information indicating thatthe sheet being cut is a hard-to-cut sheet, such as thick or glossypaper.

When the printer driver 23 receives an operation for inserting a checkinto the checkbox 52 while “A4” is currently selected as the documentsize, the printer driver 23 can further receive a mutually exclusiveselection from among “Reduce to A5 size” and “Print at A4 size” throughcorresponding radio buttons 521 and 522. The radio buttons 521 and 522are grayed out and do not accept selections when “A5” is selected as thedocument size when an operation to check the checkbox 52 is received orwhile the checkbox 52 remains unchecked.

The printer driver 23 in the present embodiment supports the followingthree modes as cut print settings. The first mode is a combination ofthe document size “A4”, a check in the checkbox 52, and a selection of“Reduce to A5 size” through the radio button 521, whereby A4-size imagesare reduced to A5 size, two A5-size pages are printed side-by-side onone A4-size sheet, and the printed sheet is subsequently cut in half.When print instructions for this setting are received, the printer 3creates two A5-sheets, each of which has a reduced image of originalimage data printed thereon. Hereinafter, this setting combination willbe called the “A4 reduce and cut setting.”

The second mode is a combination of the document size “A4”, a check inthe checkbox 52, and a selection of “Print at A4 size” through the radiobutton 522, whereby each non-reduced A4-size image is printed on oneA4-size sheet and the printed sheet is cut in half. When printinstructions for this setting are received, the printer 3 creates anA5-size sheet on which the top half of the page is printed and anotherA5-size sheet on which the bottom half is printed based on the originalimage data. Hereinafter, this setting combination will be called the “A4cut setting.”

The third mode is a combination of the document size “A5” and a check inthe checkbox 52, whereby two pages worth of A5-size images are printedside-by-side on one A4-size sheet, and the printed sheet is cut in half.When print instructions for this setting are received, the printer 3creates two A5-size sheets, each of which has a single page of theoriginal image data printed thereon. Hereinafter, this settingcombination will be called the “A5 cut setting.”

The checkbox 54 is information specifying whether the page order of theimage data is the normal or reverse order. When the editing app 22receives an instruction to execute a print while the reverse order isindicated through a check in the checkbox 54, the editing app 22 outputsthe image data for each page in reverse order to the page order at thetime of editing. Since the printer 3 discharges printed sheets face up,as described above, the first page is discharged first and stacked onthe bottom when the normal printing order is selected with single-sidedprinting. However, when the reverse printing order is selected withsingle-sided printing, the first page is discharged last and stacked onthe top.

Through a specification in the duplex print selection field 55, theprinter driver 23 receives one of the following selections: “No duplexprint,” “Duplex print with long-edge binding,” and “Duplex print withshort-edge binding.” The process of accepting a duplex print settingthrough an operation in the duplex print selection field 55 is oneexample of the duplex setting process of the present disclosure. In thepresent embodiment, the printer driver 23 does not accept instructionsfor both duplex printing and reverse order. Thus, reverse order printingis turned off when a duplex print instruction is received, and theduplex printing option is turned off when a reverse order instruction isreceived.

An image corresponding to the settings selected in the settings screen50 is displayed as the sample image 57. When a cut print setting iscurrently selected, for example, an image of printed matter cut into twopages is displayed as the sample image 57, as illustrated in FIGS. 5Aand 5B. When the selected cut print setting is the A4 reduce and cutsetting or the A5 cut setting, the sample image 57 shows two pages ofimages and a cutting image, as illustrated in FIG. 5A. When the A4setting is selected, the sample image 57 shows an image of one page anda cutting image, as illustrated in FIG. 5B.

The printer driver 23 of the present embodiment is limited to the threemodes of cut print settings described above. Hence, the printer driver23 displays a warning screen when the user operates the document sizeselection field 51 to select a size other than the A4 or A5 size while acheck is inserted in the checkbox 52. FIG. 6 illustrates an example of awarning screen 511. The warning screen 511 illustrated in FIG. 6displays a message indicating that a cut print can be set only when thedocument size is A4 or A5. When the user closes the warning screen 511by operating the OK button in the warning screen 511 or the like, theprinter driver 23 turns off the cut print setting by displaying thesettings screen 50 with the checkbox 52 unchecked. The process ofdisplaying the warning screen 511 is an example of the warning processof the present disclosure. The printer driver 23 can avoid errors due toimproper settings by displaying the warning screen when a document sizeincompatible with a cut print has been selected.

Returning to the description in FIG. 3 , after the printer driver 23displays the settings screen 50 in P13, steps P14 and P13 are repeatedas the user performs operations in the settings screen 50 in P14 and theprinter driver 23 modifies the display of the settings screen 50 in P13based on the user operations received in P14, as long as the useroperation is not an operation on the OK button 58 or the Cancel button59. Once an operation on the OK button 58 or Cancel button 59 isreceived in P14, the printer driver 23 terminates the display of thesettings screen 50 and in P15 transfers information on the advancedprint settings to the editing app 22.

Thus, the printer driver 23 and editing app 22 share the print settingsinformation. When the printer driver 23 receives an operation on the OKbutton 58 in P14, in P15 the printer driver 23 outputs settingsinformation to the editing app 22 specifying each of the print settingscurrently selected. The editing app 22 can input settings informationoutputted from the printer driver 23 in P15 and adjusts and redisplaysthe print screen originally displayed in P04 based on the inputtedsettings information. On the other hand, when an operation on the Cancelbutton 59 has been received in P14, the printer driver 23 discards allinformation on user operations received in the settings screen 50. Inthis case, in P15 the printer driver 23 may output the print settingsinformation that has been set when the advanced settings instruction hasbeen received in P12 or may output information indicating that printsettings have not been changed. Further, the editing app 22 redisplaysthe print screen displayed in P04 with no changes.

The editing app 22 can also accept a paper size selection in thedisplayed print screen. When an instruction for selecting a paper sizeis received, the editing app 22 displays a list of selectable papersizes as options. As described above, the capability information thatthe printer driver 23 transfers to the editing app 22 in P03 includesinformation on special sizes associated with cut print settings.Accordingly, the list of options displayed by the editing app 22includes options for these special sizes.

FIG. 7 illustrates a sample list 60 of paper sizes displayed by theediting app 22. The list 60 illustrated in FIG. 7 includes threeselections for special sizes: an option 61 specifying “Reduce A4 to A5and cut”; an option 62 specifying “Cut A4 as is”; and an option 63specifying “Arrange two A5 pages on A4 and cut”. Option 61 correspondsto the A4 reduce and cut setting; option 62 corresponds to the A4 cutsetting; and option 63 corresponds to the A5 cut setting. Flexibility ofcut print settings is enhanced by displaying and accepting selectionsfor the plurality of options for different cut print settings.

Upon receiving an instruction to edit advanced print settings or aninstruction to execute a print, the editing app 22 transfers informationon the currently selected print settings to the printer driver 23. Whenone of the options 61 through 63 is selected as the paper size in thecurrently displayed print screen, the editing app 22 transfersinformation specifying this option to the printer driver 23. The processof accepting a cut print setting through a selection of one of theoptions 61 through 63 is one example of the setting process of thepresent disclosure.

When the print settings information received from the editing app 22with an instruction for editing advanced print settings includesinformation indicating that one of the options 61 through 63 has beenselected as the paper size, the printer driver 23 displays the settingsscreen 50 with the corresponding cut print setting in a selected state.Specifically, the printer driver 23 inserts a check into the checkbox 52and modifies the selected states of the document size selection field 51and radio buttons 521 and 522 according to the option informationreceived from the editing app 22 as the paper size. Thus, the user canidentify the cut print setting in the displayed settings screen 50.

In the present embodiment, the settings screen 50 displayed by theprinter driver 23 does not include the special sizes as selectableoptions in the document size selection field 51. When the special sizeswere displayed in the settings screen 50, changing the displayed contentwould become complicated and could confuse the user. The printer driver23 of the present embodiment avoids user confusion by not displaying thespecial sizes in the document size selection field 51 and, hence, notaccepting special size selections.

On the other hand, when the paper size information received from theediting app 22 is a selection other than options 61 through 63, theprinter driver 23 displays the size corresponding to the received papersize information in the document size selection field 51. Further, whenthe paper size information received from the editing app 22 indicates“A4” or “A5”, the printer driver 23 does not change the checked state ofthe checkbox 52 in the settings screen 50 from a previous setting ordefault setting. When the paper size information received from theediting app 22 indicates a size other than “A4” or “A5”, the printerdriver 23 unchecks the checkbox 52 when displaying the settings screen50.

Further, when the printer driver 23 receives a cut print setting in thesettings screen 50, in P15 of FIG. 3 the printer driver 23 transfersinformation specifying the corresponding option among the options 61through 63 to the editing app 22 as paper size information rather thantransmitting the size information received in the document sizeselection field 51. For example, when values related to cut printsettings among the print settings selected in the settings screen 50match values associated with one of the options 61 through 63, theprinter driver 23 outputs information specifying this option. Theediting app 22 can display information indicating that a special sizehas been selected based on the inputted information, enabling the userto identify through the editing app 22 that a cut print has been set.

On the other hand, when a cut print setting has not been received, theprinter driver 23 transmits the size information received in thedocument size selection field 51 to the editing app 22 as information onthe selected paper size.

When the editing app 22 receives an instruction for selecting a papersize after receiving paper size information from the printer driver 23,the editing app 22 displays the list 60 with the corresponding option ina selected state based on the information received from the printerdriver 23. When receiving an instruction to execute a print while option61 or 62 is selected, the editing app 22 generates image data assumingthat the size of the images being printed is the A4 size. Further, whenreceiving an instruction to execute a print while option 63 is selected,the editing app 22 generates image data assuming that the size of theimages being printed is the A5 size. If an instruction to execute aprint is received when a paper size other than the options 61 through 63is selected, the editing app 22 generates image data assuming that thesize of the images being printed is the selected paper size.

As an alternative, the information on print settings may be written to amemory area shared by the editing app 22 and printer driver 23. That is,the editing app 22 and printer driver 23 can share information byreading print settings information from the same memory area and writingprinting settings information to the same memory area. In this case, theprinter driver 23 may write advanced settings information to the sharedmemory area in P15 of FIG. 3 .

Returning to the description of FIG. 3 , when the editing app 22receives an instruction to execute a print (print execution instruction)in the displayed print screen in P21, in P25 the editing app 22generates image data for the images being printed based on the printsettings and in P26 transfers a print instruction and the image data tothe printer driver 23. Here, the print instruction may include the printsettings information.

The printer driver 23 executes a printing process based on theinformation received from the editing app 22 (ref). In the printingprocess, the printer driver 23 generates print data based on the imagedata and transmits the generated print data and a print command to theprinter 3, directing the printer 3 to execute a print based on the printdata. Steps in this printing process will be described next withreference to the flowchart in FIG. 8 . The CPU 11 of the PC 1 executesthe printing process based on the printer driver 23.

In S101 at the beginning of the printing process in FIG. 8 , the CPU 11determines whether a cut print has been set in the print settings. Whenthe CPU 11 determines that a cut print has not been set (S101: NO), inS105 the CPU 11 determines whether the A4 size has been designated asthe document size in the print settings. When the A4 size has beendesignated (S105: YES), in S106 the CPU 11 displays a guidance screen onthe user interface 13 to inform the user that a cut print can beselected. Since the printer driver 23 of the present embodimentinstructs the user that a cut print can be selected when the documentsize is the A4 size, the printer driver 23 encourages the use of cutprints, increasing the likelihood that the user will recognize and use acut print. This can be expected to lead to savings in paper andconsumables.

FIG. 9 illustrates a sample guidance screen 70. The guidance screen 70illustrated in FIG. 9 includes radio buttons 711, 712, and 713 thataccept one mutually exclusive choice; sample images for printed mattercorresponding to each radio button selection; a Print button 72; and aCancel button 73. The radio button 711 accepts a selection for “No cut”to indicate that a cut print is not set. The radio button 712 accepts aselection for “Reduce to A5 and cut” indicating the A4 reduce and cutsetting. The radio button 713 accepts a selection for “Cut to A5 withoutreducing” indicating the A4 cut setting.

Next, in S107 the CPU 11 determines whether the Print button 72 orCancel button 73 has been operated in the guidance screen 70. When theCPU 11 determines that an instruction to cancel printing has beenreceived through the Cancel button 73 (S107: Cancel), in S131 the CPU 11notifies the editing app 22 that the printing process has been completedand terminates the printing process without generating print data. Sincethe guidance screen 70 accepts an instruction to continue or cancel aprint job, the user can determine whether or not to continue the printjob based on the guidance given in the guidance screen 70.

When the CPU 11 determines that a selection to continue the printingprocess has been received through the Print button 72 (S107: Print), inS108 the CPU 11 determines whether the radio button 711 is selected.When the CPU 11 determines that the radio button 711 is selected (S108:No cut) or when the CPU 11 determines in S105 that the document size isnot the A4 size (S105: NO), in S109 the CPU 11 generates print data andtransmits the generated print data and a print command to direct theprinter 3 to perform a normal print that does not include a cut printsetting. Subsequently, in S131 the CPU 11 notifies the editing app 22that the printing process is finished and ends the printing process.Cases in which one of the radio buttons 712 and 713 has been selectedwill be described later.

On the other hand, when the CPU 11 determines in S101 that a cut printhas been set in the print settings (S101: YES), in S111 the CPU 11determines whether the document size is the A4 size or the A5 size. Whenthe CPU 11 determines that the document size is the A4 size (S111: A4),in S112 the CPU 11 determines whether the A4 reduce and cut setting isselected. The CPU 11 reaches a YES determination in S112 when the radiobutton 521 has been selected in the settings screen 50 (see FIG. 4 ) orwhen the option 61 has been selected as the paper size in the printscreen (see FIG. 7 ).

When the CPU 11 determines that the A4 reduce and cut setting is notselected, i.e., that the A4 cut setting is selected (S112: NO) or whenthe CPU 11 determines in S108 that the Print button 72 is operated inthe guidance screen 70 while the radio button 713 is selected (S108: Noreduction), in S115 the CPU 11 transmits a cut command to the printer 3.This cut command is an instruction to cut all pages in the print job tobe subsequently transmitted. Note that the cut command need not beapplied to the entire print job but may be a cut instruction applied toindividual pages. In the latter case, the CPU 11 assigns a cutinstruction to each page and transmits these instructions whentransmitting the print data, as described below.

In S116 the CPU 11 determines whether duplex print is selected in theprint settings. When the CPU 11 determines that duplex print is notselected (S116: NO), in S117 the CPU 11 executes a one-page single-sidedprocess. In the one-page single-sided process, the CPU 11 generatesprint data for printing an A4-size image of one page on one side of anA4-size sheet and transmits the generated print data to the printer 3.

Steps in the one-page single-sided process will be described next withreference to the flowchart in FIG. 10 . In S201 at the beginning of thisprocess, the CPU 11 allocates an area in the memory 12 of apredetermined size to create a print data area for pasting rasterizedimage data of an A4-size page to generate print data. In S202 the CPU 11acquires one page worth of image data from the data generated by theediting app 22.

In S211 the CPU 11 executes a white-out process. In the white-outprocess, the CPU 11 generates print data in which the portion of theimage likely to be contacted by the cutter 35 in the printer 3 is set toa white image for which no colorant is applied. When executing a printon an inkjet-type printer 3, for example, ink deposited on the sheet maynot be completely dry immediately after printing. By forming a whiteimage in the cutting area, the CPU 11 can prevent ink from adhering tothe cutter 35, thereby preventing such ink from becoming deposited onsheets that are cut next and preventing rust from forming on the cutter35.

Steps in the white-out process will be described next with reference tothe flowchart in FIG. 11 . In S301 of the white-out process, the CPU 11determines whether the location targeted for white-out has drawing datain a color other than white. The location targeted for white-out is arange on the sheet that could be contacted by the cutter 35 duringcutting when accounting for cutting error. For example, the location isa range of ±3 mm from the longitudinal center position on the sheetincluding the center position.

When the CPU 11 determines that the location targeted for white-out hasdrawing data in a color other than white (S301: YES), in S302 the CPU 11displays a selection screen on the user interface 13 to accept aselection for the white-out method.

FIG. 12 illustrates a sample selection screen 80. The selection screen80 in FIG. 12 includes a radio button 811 for receiving the selection“Whiten image” and a radio button 812 for receiving the selection“Separate image” as methods of making the cutting area white, sampleimages showing printed matter corresponding to the radio buttons, and anOK button 82. “Whiten image” is a method of overwriting the locationtargeted for white-out with a solid white image, while “Separate image”is a method of reducing the size of the image and dividing the imageinto upper and lower parts, leaving a gap in the location targeted forwhite-out. Subsequently, the CPU 11 waits until the OK button 82 in thedisplayed selection screen 80 has been operated.

In S303 the CPU 11 determines which of the radio buttons 811 and 812 isselected when the OK button 82 is operated. When the CPU 11 determinesthat the radio button 811 has been selected (S303: Whiten image), inS306 the CPU 11 generates a processed image by changing the image datain the target location to white data. The location changed to white databecomes a gap area in which no colorant is deposited during printing.The gap area can be easily formed in the image to be printed simply byoverwriting the area with a solid white image. Since the gap area is setin reference to the center position so as to be larger than the marginof the cutting error of the printer 3 through this process, theadherence of colorant on the cutter 35 of the printer 3 is more reliablysuppressed.

However, when drawing data in a color other than white is present in thearea to be overwritten by the solid white image, that drawing data willbe lost when overwritten by the solid white image, resulting in a lossof information. In the present embodiment, a message indicating thisloss of drawing data is displayed in the selection screen 80, enablingthe user to recognize that data in the center location will be lost. Inthis case, the selection screen 80 is one example of the notificationscreen providing notice to the user that drawing data will be lost.Here, the selection screen 80 may be configured to accept not only aselection for the white-out method, but also a selection for cancelingthe print.

After completing the process of S306 or when determining in S301 that nodrawing data in a color other than white is present in the locationtargeted for white-out (S301: NO), in S307 the CPU 11 rasterizes theimage data to generate rasterized image data of a size corresponding toan A4-size sheet and in S308 pastes the rasterized image data into theprint data area to generate print data.

The print data generated in S307 has a size corresponding to theentirety of the A4-size print data area created in S201 of the one-pagesingle-sided process and is pasted over the entire print data area. Whenthe printer 3 executes a print based on this print data, the image isprinted on an A4-size sheet at a size that leaves a prescribed marginaround the periphery, as indicated by the dashed line in FIG. 13 , forexample, similar to a case in which a normal A4-size image is printed onan A4-size sheet.

On the other hand, when the CPU 11 determines that the radio button 812is selected when the OK button 82 is operated (S303: Separate image), inS311 the CPU 11 rasterizes the image data to generate rasterized imagedata of a size corresponding to approximately 98% of the A4 size. InS312 the CPU 11 generates processed image data representing a processedimage from the rasterized image data to paste the processed image datainto the print data area to generate print data. The processed image isprovided with a gap area in the longitudinal center position. The gaparea is an area of the processed image in which no image exists. Inother words, the gap area is an area in the print data area where noimage data is to be pasted. This gap area can be easily formed bydividing the image being printed into two parts and separating theparts. After completing the process in S308 or S312, the CPU 11 ends thewhite-out process and returns to the one-page single-sided process.

Note that the rasterized image data generated in S311 is smaller thanthe print data area both vertically and horizontally. In S312 the CPU 11pastes the rasterized image data into the print data area, as indicatedby shading formed of diagonal lines in FIG. 13 , so as to leave a gap ofabout 2 mm on both edges along the short sides and a gap of about 6 mmin the longitudinal center. Specifically, the CPU 11 pastes therasterized image data from a position rightward by a number of dotscorresponding to 2 mm from the left edge of the print data area and,after pasting half the rasterized image data, begins pasting the nextline of print data from a position below the pasted rasterized imagedata by a number of dots corresponding to about 6 mm. When the printer 3executes a print based on the print data generated in this way, the leftand right margins are each about 2 mm larger than the margins formed inthe white-out method, and a gap area of about 6 mm including thelongitudinal center of the sheet surface is formed. Since the gap areais set in reference to the center position so as to be larger than themargin of cutting error on the printer 3 in this case, colorant is morereliably suppressed from becoming deposited on the cutter 35 of theprinter 3.

Note that rather than performing the process in S311 described above,the CPU 11 may rasterize the image data without reducing the data sizeand in S312 may paste the rasterized image data into the print data areawith a gap formed in the longitudinal center. In this case, the CPU 11may omit lines corresponding to approximately 3 mm on the top edge ofthe rasterized image data and lines corresponding to approximately 3 mmon the bottom edge of the rasterized image data from being pasted intothe print data area. Alternatively, the CPU 11 may set the linescorresponding to approximately 6 mm from only the top edge or only thebottom edge as rasterized image data not to be pasted into the printdata area. In this way, a gap area having a length in the longitudinaldirection of the sheet that accounts for the margin of cutting area canbe formed in the center location. However, in such cases information maybe lost when drawing data extends into the omitted lines. On the otherhand, reducing the image size as described above can suppress the lossof information due to drawing data extending beyond the top and bottomof the image when the image is separated.

Instead of accepting a user selection in the selection screen 80, theprinter driver 23 may perform the white-out process according to apredetermined method. In this case, the printer driver 23 may notify theuser that the white-out process will be executed and may perform thispredetermined process rather than display the selection screen 80 inS302 of the white-out process. For example, when “Whiten image” is setas the predetermined method, the printer driver 23 may notify the userfor a prescribed time in a pop-up display that the center portion of theimage, i.e., the cutting location, will be lost and may subsequentlyexecute the whiten image process. The printer driver 23 may also becapable of receiving an operation in the selection screen for cancelingthe print.

Returning to the description of the one-page single-sided process inFIG. 10 , after completing the white-out process of S211, in S221 theCPU 11 rotates the print data area as needed. Specifically, the CPU 11rotates the print data area 180 degrees when the reverse order has beenset in the print settings and does not rotate the print data area whenthe normal order is set. In S231 the CPU 11 encodes and transmits theprint data generated by being pasted in the print data area to theprinter 3.

In S232 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for anotherpage. When there is other image data (S232: YES), in S233 the CPU 11clears the print data area and returns to S202 to acquire image data forthe next page. The second and subsequent times the white-out process isperformed the CPU 11 skips steps S302 for displaying the selectionscreen and S303 for receiving a user operation and applies the selectionresults found the first time the white-out process was performed. Sincethe user may become annoyed at repeated notifications, no morenotifications are given for the current job after the first notificationto prevent the user from having an unpleasant experience. Once the CPU11 determines in S232 that no more image data exists (S232: NO), in S234the CPU 11 discards the print data area, ends the one-page single-sidedprocess, and returns to the printing process in FIG. 8 .

When receiving print data, the printer 3 uses one page worth of printdata to print an image on one A4-size sheet, and then drives the cutter35 to cut the printed sheet in half at a midpoint along the longitudinaldirection, i.e., the conveying direction of the sheet. Since the gaparea provided in the white-out process by applying a white image orseparating the image in the cutting location reduces the likelihood ofcolorant becoming deposited on the cutter 35 in the printer 3 duringprinting, more specifically, during cutting.

The leading-edge side of the print data area holds data that is printedfirst and, in a single-sided print, becomes the front portion of thesheet in the conveying direction. As described above, after cutting asheet, the printer 3 discharges the front portion of the sheet in theconveying direction first and discharges the rear portion of the sheetin the conveying direction on top of the front portion. FIGS. 14Athrough 14D illustrate the layout order of printed matter created on theprinter 3 in examples of print data generated based on five pages worthof image data.

When the print settings specify portrait and normal order printing, theprinter driver 23 transmits the print data area to the printer 3 withoutrotation. As a result, the top half of the first page (1 u) is printedand discharged first, and the bottom half of the first page (1 d) isdischarged on top of this top half (1 u), as illustrated in FIG. 14A.When the print settings specify portrait and reverse order printing, theprinter driver 23 rotates the print data area 180 degrees beforetransmitting the print data area to the printer 3. As a result, thebottom half of the last page (5 d) is printed and discharged first, andthe top half of the last page (5 u) is discharged on top of this bottomhalf (5 d), as illustrated in FIG. 14B. By rotating the image when thereverse order is set, the bottom half of the image becomes the frontportion of the printed matter, and the top half of the printed matter isstacked on top of the bottom half.

When the print settings specify landscape and normal order printing, theprinter driver 23 transmits the print data area to the printer 3 withoutrotation. As a result, the left half of the first page (1 l) is printedand discharged first, and the right half of the first page (1 r) isdischarged on top of the left half (1 l), as illustrated in FIG. 14C.When the print settings specify landscape and reverse order printing,the printer driver 23 rotates the print data area 180 degrees beforetransmitting the print data area to the printer 3. As a result, theright half of the last page (5 r) is printed and discharged first, andthe left half of the last page (51) is discharged on top of the righthalf (5 r), as illustrated in FIG. 14D.

Returning to the description of the printing process in FIG. 8 , whenthe CPU 11 determines in S116 that duplex print is selected in the printsettings (S116: YES), in S118 the CPU 11 executes a two-page duplexprocess. In the two-page duplex process, the CPU 11 generates print datafor printing one page worth of an A4-size image on each side of anA4-size sheet and transmits the generated print data to the printer 3.

Steps in the two-page duplex process will be described next withreference to the flowchart in FIG. 15 . In S401 of the two-page duplexprocess, the CPU 11 allocates area in the memory 12 of a predeterminedsize to create two A4-size print data areas. In S402 the CPU 11 firstacquires image data for one page and in S403 executes the white-outprocess. The white-out process is the same process described above withreference to FIG. 11 .

In S405 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for other pages.When the CPU 11 determines that image data exists for another page(S405: YES), in S406 the CPU 11 acquires image data for the next pageand in S407 executes the white-out process. As in the one-pagesingle-sided process, the CPU 11 skips steps S302 and S303 of thewhite-out process when the process is executed the second and subsequenttimes. On the other hand, when image data does not exist for other pages(S405: NO), in S408 the CPU 11 adds one blank page.

In S411 the CPU 11 rotates the print data areas of the two pages asneeded. In S421 the CPU 11 encodes and transmits the two pages worth ofprint data generated by being pasted in the print data areas for twopages to the printer 3.

Specifically, when long-edge binding has been set, the CPU 11 rotatesonly the print data area for the first side 180 degrees so that theimage for the first page and the image for the second page are orientedopposite each other relative to the conveying direction of the sheet.Alternatively, when short-edge binding has been set, the CPU 11 rotatesboth print data areas for the first and second sides 180 degrees so thatthe image for the first page and the image for the second page have thesame orientation relative to the conveying direction of the sheet. Theprint data area for the first side is generated based on the image dataacquired first, and the printer 3 prints the first side first. Since thePC 1 of the present embodiment generates processed images with theorientation of the image on the back side corresponding to whether longor short-edge binding is set, the printer 3 can output printed matterwith suitable duplex printing. Note that the binding direction in thetwo-page duplex process is set based on the long or short side of theoriginal A4-size image rather than the long or short side of the imageafter cutting.

In S422 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for other pages.When the CPU 11 determines that image data exists for another page(S422: YES), in S423 the CPU 11 clears both print data areas and returnsto S402 to acquire image data for the next page. When the CPU 11determines that no more image data exists (S422: NO), in S424 the CPU 11discards both print data areas, ends the two-page duplex process, andreturns to the printing process in FIG. 8 .

When receiving print data, the printer 3 uses two pages worth of printdata to print images on both sides of one A4-size sheet, and then drivesthe cutter 35 to cut the printed sheet in half at a midpoint along thelongitudinal direction, i.e., the conveying direction of the sheet.Since a gap area is also provided in the two-page duplex process byadding a white image or separating the image, this gap area can reducethe adherence of colorant on the cutter 35 of the printer 3 duringprinting, more specifically, during cutting.

FIGS. 16A through 16D illustrate the layout order of printed mattercreated on the printer 3 using examples of pasting positions forsingle-sided print data generated based on two pages worth of imagedata. When there are three or more pages worth of image data, the CPU 11processes the image data for the third and subsequent pages in the samemanner described in this example.

When long-edge binding and portrait printing have been set, the printerdriver 23 transmits the print data to the printer 3 after rotating onlythe print data area for the first side, as illustrated in FIG. 16A. As aresult, printed matter having the top half of the first page (1 u) andthe top half of the second page (2 u) printed on opposite sides isdischarged with the first page face down, and printed matter having thebottom half of the first page (1 d) and the bottom half of the secondpage (2 d) printed on opposite sides is discharged on top of the firstprinted matter with the first page face down.

When short-edge binding and portrait printing have been set, the printerdriver 23 rotates both print data areas for the first and second sidesbefore transmitting the print data to the printer 3, as illustrated inFIG. 16B. As a result, printed matter having the top half of the firstpage (1 u) and the bottom half of the second page (2 d) printed onopposite sides is discharged with the first page face down, and printedmatter having the bottom half of the first page (1 d) and the top halfof the second page (2 u) printed on opposite sides is discharged on topof the first printed matter with the first page face down.

When long-edge binding and landscape printing have been set, the printerdriver 23 transmits the print data to the printer 3 after rotating onlythe print data area for the first side, as illustrated in FIG. 16C. As aresult, printed matter having the left half of the first page (1 l) andthe left half of the second page (21) printed on opposite sides isdischarged with the first page face down, and printed matter having theright half of the first page (1 r) and the right half of the second page(2 r) printed on opposite sides is discharged on top of first printedmatter with the first page face down.

When short-edge binding and landscape printing have been set, theprinter driver 23 transmits the print data to the printer 3 afterrotating both print data areas for the first and second sides, asillustrated in FIG. 16D. As a result, printed matter having the lefthalf of the first page (1 l) and the right half of the second page (2 r)printed on opposite sides is discharged with the first page face down,and printed matter having the right half of the first page (1 r) and theleft half of the second page (21) printed on opposite sides isdischarged on top of the first printed matter with the first page facedown.

Returning to the description of the printing process in FIG. 8 , whenthe CPU 11 determines in S111 that the document size is the A5 size(S111: A5) or when the CPU 11 determines in S111 that the document sizeis the A4 size (S111: A4) and determines in S112 that the A4 reduce andcut setting is selected (S112: YES) or when the CPU 11 determines inS108 that the Print button 72 is operated in the guidance screen 70while the radio button 712 is selected (S108: Reduction), in S121 theCPU 11 transmits a cut command to the printer 3. The process in S121 isidentical to the process in S115.

In S122 the CPU 11 determines whether duplex print is selected in theprint settings. When the CPU 11 determines that duplex print is notselected (S122: NO), in S123 the CPU 11 executes a two-page single-sidedprocess. In the two-page single-sided process, the CPU 11 generatesprint data for printing two pages worth of A5-size images on one side ofan A4-size sheet and transmits the generated print data to the printer3.

Steps in the two-page single-sided process will be described next withreference to the flowchart in FIG. 17 . In S501 at the beginning of thisprocess, the CPU 11 allocates an area in the memory 12 of apredetermined size to create a print data area for pasting rasterizedimage data to generate A4-size print data.

In S502 the CPU 11 acquires one page worth of image data from the imagedata generated by the editing app 22 and in S503 rasterizes the imagedata to produce rasterized image data of a size corresponding to the A5size. When the document size is A4 size, the CPU 11 generates rasterizedimage data of a reduced image. When the document size is A5 size, theCPU 11 generates rasterized image data without reduction. Sincerasterized image data of an appropriate size is generated based on thedocument size, there is greater flexibility in the size of image thatcan be printed, improving convenience for the user. In S504 the CPU 11pastes the rasterized image data into the leading-edge side of the printdata area to generate print data corresponding to the leading-edge sideof an A4-size sheet. In the two-page single-sided process, the CPU 11does not rotate the image.

In S505 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for anotherpage. When there is other image data (S505: YES), in S506 the CPU 11acquires image data for the next page, in S507 rasterizes the image datato produce rasterized image data of a size corresponding to the A5-sizeas in S503, and in S508 pastes the rasterized image data into thetrailing-edge side of the print data area to generate print datacorresponding to the trailing-edge side of the A4-size sheet whileproviding a gap area between the leading-edge side and trailing-edgeside to account for cutting error. The process of Steps S504 and S508 isone example of the generation process of the present disclosure. Byreducing and consolidating two pages worth of A4-size images or byconsolidating two pages worth of A5-size images and arranging the twopages in an A4-size print data area, the printed matter having two pagesworth of images printed in a single print can be obtained. Further,since rasterized image data based on the image data acquired first isarranged in the leading-edge side while rasterized image data based onimage data acquired last is arranged in the trailing-edge side of theprint data area, printed matter based on the image data acquired firstis outputted first. Hence, the order of output follows the output orderprioritized in the editing app 22.

Steps S504 and S508 generate layout image data representing a layoutimage in which two pages of A5-size images are arranged adjacent to eachother in the longitudinal direction of the A4-size print data area witha gap area formed between the two and pastes the layout image data intothe print data area to generate print data of the A4 size. Aftercompleting the process in S508 or when the CPU 11 determines in S505that no image data remains (S505: NO), in S511 the CPU 11 encodes andtransmits the print data generated by being pasted in the print dataarea to the printer 3. The process of Step S511 is one example of thetransmission process of the present disclosure.

Note that in S504 and S508 the CPU 11 provides a gap area to account forcutting error and pastes the rasterized image data at positions that addfurther space to the top and bottom in the longitudinal direction basedon the difference between the A4 size and A5 size. The length of thelong side of an A4-size sheet is 297 mm, which is 1 mm longer than twicethe length of the short side of an A5-size sheet. Therefore, the CPU 11pastes the rasterized image data in the print data area, as indicated byshading formed of diagonal lines in FIG. 18 , while leaving blank spaceshaving a length one-fourth of this 1 mm difference, i.e., 0.25 mm, onboth sides of each A5-size rasterized image data in the longitudinaldirection of the print data area, for example.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example in which the margins are set to 3 mm,cutting error is ±3 mm, and the length of the gap area is 6 mm in thelongitudinal direction of the sheet. Since 0.25 mm of space is providedon each side of the gap area, a blank space of 6.5 mm is formed betweenthe print data for the first page and the print data for the secondpage. In other words, in this example, the CPU 11 pastes the rasterizedimage data for the first page beginning 0.25 mm below the top edge ofthe print data area and pastes the rasterized image data for the secondpage beginning 6.5 mm below the end of the first page. As a result, themargins on the leading edge and trailing edge are 3.25 mm each, whilethe length of the gap area including the blank spaces is 6.5 mm in thelongitudinal direction of the sheet. Thus, the length of the gap area inthis layout image is twice as large as the margins on the leading edgeand trailing edge.

In S512 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for anotherpage. If the CPU 11 determines that there is more image data (S512:YES), in S513 the CPU 11 clears the print data area and returns to S502to acquire image data for the next page. However, if the CPU 11determines that there is no more image data (S512: NO), in S514 the CPU11 discards the print data area, ends the two-page single-sided processand returns to the printing process in FIG. 8 . Through the two-pagesingle-sided process, the CPU 11 generates print data in which arearranged two pages worth of A4-size images reduced to the A5 size or twopages worth of A5-size images and transmits this print data to theprinter 3.

When receiving print data, the printer 3 prints two pages of images onone side of an A4-size sheet based on the print data, and then drivesthe cutter 35 to cut the printed sheet in half at a midpoint along thelongitudinal direction, i.e., the conveying direction of the sheet. Byprinting and cutting based on the print data received from the PC 1, theprinter 3 can create two sheets of A5-size printed matter through asimple process. In this case, the size of a sheet produced by cuttingthe A4-size sheet at the center position is one example of the secondsize of the present disclosure. That is, the second size of the presentdisclosure need not be exactly half of the first size of the presentdisclosure.

When the printer 3 executes a print based on this print data, the topand bottom margins are each 0.25 mm wider than the 3 mm setting and a6.5-mm wide gap area is formed at the longitudinal center of the sheet.This gap area provided at the center position between the image for onepage and the image for the other page suppresses colorant from adheringto the cutter 35 of the printer 3 during printing, more specifically,during cutting. Further, since the length of the gap area in the exampleof FIG. 18 is twice the length of the margins on both edges in thelongitudinal direction of the sheet, the lengths of all margins of thecut sheets are consistent in the longitudinal direction of the sheetwhen the printed sheet is cut at a center position in the length of thegap area. This results in printed matter having a good appearance with abalanced arrangement of images.

FIGS. 19A through 19D illustrate the layout order of printed mattercreated on the printer 3 using examples of print data generated based onfive pages worth of image data. When the normal order has been set,regardless of whether portrait or landscape printing has been selected,printed matter is stacked in order with the first page on the bottom, asillustrated in FIGS. 19A and 19C. When the reverse order has been set,regardless of whether portrait or landscape printing has been selected,the printed matter is stacked in order with the last page on the bottom,as illustrated in FIGS. 19B and 19D.

Returning to the description of the printing process in FIG. 8 , if theCPU 11 determines in S122 that duplex print is selected in the printsettings (S122: YES), in S124 the CPU 11 executes a four-page duplexprocess. In the four-page duplex process, the CPU 11 generates printdata for printing two pages of A5-size images on each side of an A4-sizesheet for a total of four pages and transmits the generated print datato the printer 3.

Steps in the four-page duplex process will be described next withreference to the flowchart in FIG. 20 . In S601 at the beginning of thisprocess, the CPU 11 allocates area in the memory 12 of a predeterminedsize to create two print data areas for pasting rasterized image data togenerate print data for two A4-size pages.

In S602 the CPU 11 acquires one page worth of image data from the imagedata generated by the editing app 22 and in S603 rasterizes the imagedata to produce rasterized image data of a size corresponding to the A5size. The process in S603 is identical to the process described in S503and S507 of the two-page single-sided process in FIG. 17 . In S604 theCPU 11 rotates the rasterized image data appropriately and pastes therasterized image data at a prescribed location in the print data area.The process of Step S604 is one example of the generation process of thepresent disclosure. As in the two-page single-sided process, in thefour-page duplex process the CPU 11 generates layout image datarepresenting a layout image with a gap area and pastes the layout imagedata as in the example of FIG. 18 . Rotation of the image will bedescribed later.

In S611 the CPU 11 determines whether rasterized image data for fourpages has been pasted. When the CPU 11 determines that not all fourpages have been pasted (S611: NO), in S612 the CPU 11 determines whetherimage data exists for another page. When the CPU 11 determines thatimage data does exist (S612: YES), the CPU 11 returns to S602, acquiresimage data for the next page, rasterizes the image data, and pastes therasterized image data in the print data area. By repeating the processin S604, the CPU 11 generates print data for a layout image in each ofthe two print data areas having two pages worth of A5-size imagesarranged adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction of theA4-size print data area. The layout images generated in the two printdata areas are examples of the first layout image and the second layoutimage of the present disclosure, respectively.

When the CPU 11 determines in S611 that all four pages have been pasted(S611: YES) or when the CPU 11 determines in S612 that image data doesnot exist for another page (S612: NO), in S615 the CPU 11 encodes andtransmits the two pages worth of print data generated by being pasted inthe print data areas for two pages to the printer 3. The process of StepS615 is one example of the transmission process of the presentdisclosure.

In S621 the CPU 11 determines whether image data exists for other pages.When the CPU 11 determines that more image data exists (S621: YES), inS622 the CPU 11 clears the print data areas and returns to S602 toacquire image data for the next page. However, when the CPU 11determines that no more image data exists (S621: NO), in S623 the CPU 11discards the print data areas, ends the four-page duplex process, andreturns to the printing process in FIG. 8 .

When receiving print data, the printer 3 prints images on both sides ofan A4-size sheet, and then drives the cutter 35 to cut the printed sheetin half at a midpoint along the longitudinal direction, i.e., theconveying direction of the sheet. The gap area provided in the center ofthe sheet in the four-page duplex process suppresses colorant fromadhering to the cutter 35 in the printer 3 during printing, morespecifically, during cutting. In the present embodiment, after printingone side of a sheet based on print data for the first side, the printer3 inverts the sheet while conveying the sheet back along the conveyingpath R2 and conveying path R1 and subsequently prints the other sidebased on print data for the second side. Thus, an image represented bythe image data in the trailing-edge side of the print data area for thesecond side is printed on the back of the page printed according toimage data in the leading-edge side of the print data for the firstside.

In order to obtain printed matter having the second page printed on theback side of the first page and the fourth page printed on the back sideof the third page, the printer driver 23 of the present embodimentrotates the images being pasted, as illustrated in FIGS. 21A through21D. FIGS. 21A through 21D illustrate examples of pasting positions fortwo sides of print data generated based on four pages worth of imagedata. The binding direction in the four-page duplex process isdetermined based on either the long side or short side of the sheetafter cutting, which is the long side or short side of the originalimage.

When long-edge binding and portrait printing have been set, as shown inFIG. 21A, the printer driver 23 rotates the rasterized image data forthe first page 90 degrees counterclockwise and pastes the data in thetrailing-edge side of the print data area for the first side. Further,the printer driver 23 rotates the rasterized image data for the secondpage 90 degrees counterclockwise and pastes the data in the leading-edgeside of the print data area for the second side. Further, the printerdriver 23 rotates the rasterized image data for the third page 90degrees counterclockwise and pastes the data in the leading-edge side ofthe print data area for the first side. Further, the printer driver 23rotates the rasterized image data for the fourth area for the secondside. In this case, all images for the first through fourth pages areoriented in the same direction. As a result, printed matter having thefirst page and second page printed on opposite sides with long-edgebinding is discharged with the first page face down, and printed matterhaving the third page and fourth page printed on opposite sides withlong-edge binding is discharged on top of the first printed matter withthe third page face down.

When short-edge binding and portrait printing have been set, asillustrated in FIG. 21B, the printer driver 23 rotates the rasterizedimage data for the first page 90 degrees counterclockwise and pastes thedata in the trailing-edge side of the print data area for the firstside. Further, the printer driver 23 rotates the rasterized image datafor the second page 90 degrees clockwise and pastes the data in theleading-edge side of the print data area for the second side. Further,the printer driver 23 rotates the rasterized image data for the thirdpage 90 degrees counterclockwise and pastes the data in the leading-edgeside of the print data area for the first side. Further, the printerdriver 23 rotates the rasterized image data for the fourth page 90degrees clockwise and pastes the data in the trailing-edge side of theprint data area for the second side. In this case, the images for thesecond page and fourth page are oriented in opposite directions from theimages for the first page and third page. As a result, printed matterhaving the first page and second page printed on opposite sides withshort-edge binding is discharged with the first page face down, andprinted matter having the third page and fourth page printed on oppositesides with short-edge binding is discharged on top of the first printedmatter with the third page face down.

When long-edge binding and landscape printing have been set, asillustrated in FIG. 21C, the printer driver 23 pastes the rasterizedimage data for the first page with no rotation in the trailing-edge sideof the print data area for the first side, and pastes the rasterizedimage data for the second page with no rotation in the leading-edge sideof the print data area for the second side. Further, the printer driver23 pastes the rasterized image data for the third page with no rotationin the leading-edge side of the print data area for the first side, andpastes the rasterized image data for the fourth page with no rotation inthe trailing-edge side of the print data area for the second side. Inthis case, all images for the first through fourth pages are oriented inthe same direction. As a result, printed matter having the first pageand second page printed on opposite sides with long-edge binding isdischarged with the first page face down, and printed matter having thethird page and fourth page printed on opposite sides with long-edgebinding is discharged on top of the first printed matter with the thirdpage face down.

When short-edge binding and landscape printing have been set, asillustrated in FIG. 21D, the printer driver 23 pastes the rasterizedimage data for the first page with no rotation in the trailing-edge sideof the print data area for the first side, and pastes the rasterizedimage data for the second page after rotating the print data 180 degreesin the leading-edge side of the print data area for the second side.Further, the printer driver 23 pastes the rasterized image data for thethird page with no rotation in the leading-edge side of the print dataarea for the first side, and pastes the rasterized image data for thefourth page after rotating the data 180 degrees in the trailing-edgeside of the print data area for the second side. In this case, imagesfor the second page and fourth page are oriented in the oppositedirection from images for the first page and third page. As a result,printed matter having the first page and second page printed on oppositesides with short-edge binding is discharged with the first page facedown, and printed matter having the third page and fourth page printedon opposite sides with short-edge binding is discharged on top of thefirst printed matter with the third page face down.

Returning to the description of the printing process in FIG. 8 , afterthe CPU 11 completes any of the one-page single-sided process of S117,the two-page duplex process of S118, the two-page single-sided processof S123, and the four-page duplex process of S124, in S131 the CPU 11notifies the editing app 22 that the printing process is finished andends the printing process. As described above, the printer driver 23 inthe present embodiment can accept a selection through the guidancescreen 70 (see FIG. 9 ) indicating whether to set a cut print and canmodify the cut print setting based on the user selection. Thisconfiguration improves user convenience since the user can print using acut print without having to cancel the print job and start over.

Returning to the description of the sequence diagram in FIG. 3 , whenthe printer driver 23 transmits print data and a print command to theprinter 3 according to the printing process, in P31 the printer 3executes a print, as described above. If the print settings include acut print setting, the printer driver 23 transmits a cut command to theprinter 3 prior to the print data. Accordingly, in P32 the printer 3drives the cutter 35 after printing to cut the printed sheet at thecenter position, and subsequently discharges the cut sheets.

As described above in detail, with the printer driver 23 of the presentembodiment, the PC 1 arranges rasterized image data corresponding to twoA5-size pages side-by-side in the sheet conveying direction of theprinter 3, pastes this data in an A4-size print data area, and transmitsthe print data generated by being pasted in this print data area to theprinter 3 in association with a cut command. The printer 3 prints asheet based on the print data received from the PC 1 and cuts theprinted sheet in half, thereby outputting A5-size printed matter withrespective images printed in page units. This eliminates the need forthe printer 3 to perform a process for arranging images, therebyreducing the load on the printer 3.

Further, according to the printer driver 23 of the present embodiment,the PC 1 generates processed image data representing a processed imagefrom image data representing an image to be printed at A4 size toprovide a gap area in which the printer 3 does not deposit colorant at alocation that includes the longitudinal center and transmits print databased on this processed image data to the printer 3 in association witha cut command. The printer 3 prints the processed image on a sheet basedon the print data received from the PC 1 and cuts the printed sheet atthe center position. Accordingly, the gap area in which no colorant isdeposited is formed at the location to be cut by the printer 3, therebysuppressing colorant from adhering to the cutter 35 of the printer 3.

The printer driver 23 of the present embodiment also provides specialsizes associated with cut print settings as paper sizes and directs theediting app 22 to display the special size options. When the printerdriver 23 receives a print instruction with a special size selectedthrough the editing app 22, the printer driver 23 generates an image ofa cut print according to the cut print setting associated with theselected special size and transmits print data representing this cutprint image to the printer 3. In other words, the user can complete acut print setting simply by selecting a special size in the editing app22. This eliminates the need for the user to perform a setting operationvia the settings screen 50 of the printer driver 23 to set the cut printor an operation to open this settings screen 50, thereby reducing theuser's time and effort required for performing a cut print.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with variousexample structures outlined above and illustrated in the drawings,various alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/orsubstantial equivalents, whether known or that may be presentlyunforeseen, may become apparent to those having at least ordinary skillin the art. Accordingly, the example embodiments of the disclosure, asset forth above, are intended to be illustrative of the invention, andnot limiting the invention. Various changes may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, thedisclosure is intended to embrace all known or later developedalternatives, modifications, variations, improvements, and/orsubstantial equivalents. Some specific examples of potentialalternatives, modifications, or variations in the described inventionare provided below.

For example, the device that executes the program may be a smartphone ora tablet computer rather than the PC 1. Further, the PC 1 may beconnected to two or more printers. The printer 3 is also not limited toa standalone printer, but may be a multifunction peripheral, a copier, afax machine, or the like.

Although the printer driver 23 in the embodiment described above isprovided with three selectable cut print settings, the printer driver 23may be provided with just one selectable cut print setting from amongthe A4 reduce and cut setting and the A5 cut setting or two selectablecut print settings including at least one of the A4 reduce and cutsetting and the A5 cut setting.

While layout image data representing a layout image is generated in theabove embodiment by arranging rasterized image data at prescribedpositions in a print data area, the layout image data may be generatedby arranging the image data before rasterization and subsequentlyrasterizing the layout image data to generate print data, for example.

Further, the guidance screen 70 may have a checkbox for receiving aselection not to display the screen the next time, as illustrated inFIG. 9 . If the printer driver 23 receives an operation in the Printbutton 72 while this checkbox is checked, the printer driver 23 storesinformation for not displaying the guidance screen and executes theprint according to the received print settings without displaying theguidance screen in subsequent prints.

In the present embodiment, if the document size is changed while a cutprint is set, a warning screen is displayed and the cut print setting isremoved, but the present invention is not limited to this configuration.For example, if a cut print setting has been received, a change in thedocument size may not be accepted or may be canceled. Alternatively, thewarning screen may be modified to accept a user selection on whether toemploy the cut print or the selected document size.

When the reverse order has been set in the present embodiment, imagedata is acquired from the editing app 22 in the reverse order, but theprinter driver 23 may also acquire image data from the editing app 22 inthe normal order and rearrange the image data to the reverse order.

The margin sizes illustrated in this embodiment are merely examples.Further, the printer 3 may be capable of cutting a sheet at anyspecified position not restricted to the center position of the A4-sizesheet based on an instruction from the printer driver 23. The printer 3may also be capable of cutting sheets of sizes other than the A4 size.

In any of the flowcharts disclosed in the embodiment, the plurality ofprocesses that make up any of the plurality of steps may be executed inparallel, or the order in which the processes are performed may bemodified in any way that does not produce inconsistencies in theprocesses.

The processes disclosed in the embodiments may be executed by a singleCPU, a plurality of CPUs, an ASIC or other hardware, or a combination ofthese components. Further, the processes disclosed in the embodimentsmay be achieved through a storage medium that stores the programs usedto implement those processes or according to any of various othermethods or formats.

What is claimed is:
 1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring a set of computer-readable instructions installed on andexecuted by a computer in an information processing device, theinformation processing device including: a user interface configured toreceive a user operation; a communication interface configured tocommunicate with a printer; and the computer, the printer having: aprinting function for printing an image on a sheet of a printing mediumwhile conveying the sheet in a prescribed direction parallel to alongitudinal direction of the sheet; and a cutting function for cuttingthe printed sheet on which the image is printed, the set ofcomputer-readable instructions, when executed by the computer, causingthe information processing device to perform: a setting process to set,in response to receiving an instruction through the user interface, acut print setting for printing an image on a sheet having a first sizeand dividing the printed sheet on which the image is printed at a centerposition of the printed sheet in the prescribed direction into a firstportion and a second portion, the first portion and the second portionhaving a second size, wherein the set of computer-readable instructions,when executed by the computer, causes the information processing deviceto further perform: in response to receiving a print instruction inwhich the cut print setting is set: a generation process to acquirefirst page data representing a first target image and second page datarepresenting a second target image from image data representing aplurality of target images corresponding to respective ones of aplurality of pages to generate layout image data representing a layoutimage in which a first image corresponding to the first target image anda second image corresponding to the second target image are arrangedadjacent to each other in the prescribed direction, the plurality oftarget images including the first target image and the second targetimage, the plurality of pages including a first page and a second pageimmediately following the first page, the first page data correspondingto the first page, the second page data corresponding to the secondpage, the layout image having a size corresponding to the first size,the first image and the second image having a size corresponding to thesecond size; and a transmission process to transmit print data based onthe layout image data generated in the generation process and a cutcommand to the printer, and wherein the printer is configured to printthe layout image on a sheet having the first size and cut the printedsheet on which the layout image is printed at a center position of theprinted sheet in the prescribed direction in response to receiving theprint data and the cut command.
 2. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 1, wherein in the generation process,when the first target image and the second target image have a sizecorresponding to the first size, the first image is obtained by reducingthe first target image to a size corresponding to the second size andthe second image is obtained by reducing the second target image to asize corresponding to the second size.
 3. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein in thegeneration process, when the first target image and the second targetimage have a size corresponding to the second size, the first image isthe first target image and the second image is the second target image.4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium according toclaim 1, wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, whenexecuted by the computer, causes the information processing device tofurther perform: a selection process to select, in response to receivinga selection through the user interface, a target image size of each ofthe plurality of target images from among a plurality of candidate sizesincluding the first size and the second size, and wherein when the firstsize is selected as the target image size in the selection process, inthe generation process, the first page data represents the first targetimage corresponding to the first size, the second page data representsthe second target image corresponding to the first size, the first imageis obtained by reducing the first target image to a size correspondingto the second size, and the second image is obtained by reducing thesecond target image to a size corresponding to the second size.
 5. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 4,wherein in the setting process, the cut print setting can be set whenone of the first size and the second size is selected as the targetimage size in the selection process, whereas the cut print settingcannot be set when neither the first size nor the second size isselected as the target image size in the selection process.
 6. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 4,wherein the set of computer-readable instructions, when executed by thecomputer, causes the information processing device to further perform: awarning process to issue a warning via the user interface in response toreceiving the selection to select a size other than the first size andthe second size as the target image size while the cut print setting isset in the setting process.
 7. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 4, wherein the first size is the A4size, and the second size is the A5 size.
 8. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein thegeneration process acquires a plurality of sets of page data includingthe first page data and the second page data one by one in an order inwhich output is prioritized, and generates the layout image datarepresenting the layout image in which the first image is arranged in aleading-edge side of the prescribed direction and the second image isarranged in a trailing-edge side of the prescribed direction, theplurality of sets of page data representing respective ones of theplurality of target images, the second page data being acquiredimmediately after the first page data.
 9. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the setof computer-readable instructions, when executed by the computer, causesthe information processing device to further perform: a duplex settingprocess to set, in response to receiving an instruction through the userinterface, a duplex print setting for printing an image on each of afirst surface and a second surface of a sheet, and wherein when theprint instruction in which the duplex print setting is set is received,the generation process acquires four pages worth of image data includingthe first page data, the second page data, third page data, and fourthpage data, and generates the layout image data representing a firstlayout image to be printed on the first surface of the sheet and asecond layout image to be printed on the second surface of the sheet,the plurality of target images further including a third target imagecorresponding to a third page immediately following the second page anda fourth target image corresponding to a fourth page immediatelyfollowing the third page, the third page data corresponding to the thirdpage and representing the third target image, the fourth page datacorresponding to the fourth page and representing the fourth targetimage, the first target image and the third target image being arrangedadjacent to each other in the prescribed direction in the first layoutimage, the second target image and the fourth target image beingarranged adjacent to each other in the prescribed direction in thesecond layout image, the first target image and the second target imagebeing to be printed on respective ones of the first surface and thesecond surface of the first portion, the third target image and thefourth target image being to be printed on respective ones of the firstsurface and the second surface of the second portion.
 10. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium according to claim 9,wherein the duplex setting process further sets one of a long-edgebinding setting and a short-edge binding setting, wherein when thelong-edge binding setting is set along with the duplex print setting inthe print instruction, the generation process generates the layout imagedata such that the first target image to be printed on the first surfaceof the sheet is oriented in the same direction as the second targetimage to be printed on the second surface of the sheet and the thirdtarget image to be printed on the first surface of the sheet is orientedin the same direction as the fourth target image to be printed on thesecond surface of the sheet, and wherein when the short-edge bindingsetting is set along with the duplex print setting in the printinstruction, the generation process generates the layout image data suchthat the first target image to be printed on the first surface of thesheet is oriented in the opposite direction from the second target imageto be printed on the second surface of the sheet and the third targetimage to be printed on the first surface of the sheet is oriented in theopposite direction from the fourth target image to be printed on thesecond surface of the sheet.
 11. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium according to claim 1, wherein the generation processgenerates the layout image data representing the layout image in which agap area is arranged between the first target image and the secondtarget image, no colorant being to be deposited in a region on a sheetcorresponding to the gap area during the printer printing the layoutimage on the sheet.
 12. The non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium according to claim 11, wherein the layout image data representsthe layout image in which a first margin area is arranged on aleading-edge side of the first target image, the second target image,and the gap area in the prescribed direction and a second margin area isarranged on a trailing-edge side of the first target image, the secondtarget image, and the gap area in the prescribed direction, the firstmargin area having a first length in the prescribed direction, thesecond margin area having the first length in the prescribed direction,the gap area having a second length in the prescribed direction, thesecond length being twice the first length.